06 March 2018

Star Tours Flight 55

One of the benefits of a ride system
like Star Tours, in it’s the Adventures Continue version, is that there are new
destinations and sequences that can be added in regularly. This was part of the
plan since the attraction was refurbished in 2011. Since that time several
sequences have seen tweaks to include new characters, from launch scenes to
holographic figures, and two new destinations have been added: Jakku and Crait.
While characters and locations from the episodic films continue to be highlighted,
little has been done to include some of the more prominent features from other
films and media. There are a couple of standouts that are worthy of inclusion,
and we’re visiting them today in a blue sky daydream.

Jedha – Home to Jedi temple ruins, the
scourge of the galaxy, a militant rebel faction, religious faithful, and
Imperial strip miners, there’s a lot of ideas to play with here. Sure, some of
the geo-political elements may not make it into a quick minute and a half
fly-through, but the scenery is something to behold. Plus, with a problem on
the horizon, also known as a test of the Death Star’s capabilities, it’d be
nice to spend a few moments conversing with K-2SO.

I’m going to throw the caveat in here
that I thought about Rogue One’s other featured planet, Scarif, but with a
shield gate and imminent destruction threads converging, I thought putting
guests in the same no way out scenario as the film’s leads would be problematic
to say the least.

Lothal – Give guests a flyover of the
gorgeous grasslands, complete with loth cats and loth wolves, a head-to-head
with Grand Admiral Thrawn, and an obvious cameo of the Ghost, and that’s a
winning combination. There is no escaping that this would require a bit more
work as the environments we’ve seen of Lothal until now have been for an
animated show, but I trust the talents of Imagineering and Lucasfilm that this
wouldn’t be too much of a challenge.

Taanab – Alright, I’m going to put my
cards on the table. Lando’s line about his maneuver at the Battle of Taanab is
where this comes from, and I’m not so certain we won’t see this play out in the
upcoming solo film. However, all of this is just my way not so subtle way of
getting Donald Glover to appear in the attraction as Lando. Does anyone have a
problem with this?

Mandalore – The home of Boba Fett and
Sabine Wren, and a host of other characters critical to the stories of Star
Wars. This rarely unified clan planet is the stuff legends are made of and has
captivated the minds of enthusiasts since Empire Strikes Back. The planet and
its people have been highlighted in both The Clone Wars and Rebels animated series
with enough fodder to make any Star Tours flight one guests will never forget.

The wonderful thing about our favorite
far, far away galaxy is that the possibilities for Star Tours are endless. Even
if the only stick to movies and other visual media, there are countless
destinations that we will still never see. That’s always been the wonderful
thing about Star Wars, it has the room for all the stories you can imagine and
then some. Of course, being able to visit a few of these distant planets that
we’ve all seen and dreamed about wouldn’t be so bad either!